Federal Justice Minister David Lametti wrote to his provincial and territorial counterparts encouraging them to follow the lead of the Trudeau government and introduce legislation mandating training on sexual assault law for the judges they appoint.

“I have sent a letter to my provincial and territorial colleagues outlining the initiatives in Bill C-5 in the hopes that all will follow suit,” Lametti told the House justice committee on Tuesday, in reference to legislation moved by the Liberal government that would require training on sexual assault law for all federally appointed judges. It was the first meeting for the committee’s study of the bill.

The legislation is a modified version of former Conservative interim leader Rona Ambrose’s private member’s bill from the previous Parliament. Ambrose’s bill passed unanimously through the House of Commons but was effectively killed in the Senate by legislative delays. The Senate committee assigned to study the bill made changes that required re-approval from the Commons, though this happened too close to the fall election for the lower chamber to take it up a second time. All bills that do not receive royal assent before Parliament dissolves for an election are deemed dead.

The Liberals ran on the promise that they would revive the bill and require that “all judges in Canada” take sexual assault law training, which discusses the myths and stereotypes about victims and the effects trauma can have on victims’ memory.

The federal government only has the power to mandate specific training for the judges it appoints, which includes federal court and superior court judges. Provinces and territories appoint the judges of their courts.

Lametti said he hopes the introduction of Bill C-5 helps “set the tone” across the country on improving judges’ training for sexual assault cases, but ultimately it’s the responsibility of the provinces and territories to implement their own framework.

“I sincerely believe in doing so we will encourage and insight them to do not something identical but something in-like manor,” Lametti said in French.

A spokesperson for Ontario Attorney General Doug Downey, though, says the office has not received a letter as Lametti described, as of Tuesday afternoon – but that Downey is in support of the federal legislation.

“Attorney General Downey applauds Minister Lametti for working across party lines and acting on the Honourable Rona Ambrose’s private member’s bill. The legislation to amend the Criminal Code would address an important gap in judicial education by ensuring all newly appointed provincial superior court judges undergo training for sexual assault cases,” Downey’s press secretary Jenessa Crognali told iPolitics in an email.

“Attorney General Downey is committed to building safer communities in Ontario and remains open to exploring options that support this effort, including engaging with Ontario’s judiciary to understand whether a similar provincial approach could strengthen sexual assault survivors’ ability to access justice.”

A member of Lametti’s staff provided iPolitics with a copy of one of the letters it sent shortly after this article was originally published. In the letter addressed to New Brunswick Justice Minister and Attorney General Andrea Anderson-Mason, Lametti asks her “to consider what appropriate measures you can take in your jurisdiction to support the objectives of Bill C-5.”

The letter sent to Anderson-Mason (which is included below) was stamped with Monday’s date. Lametti’s staff said the letters sent to each of the provinces and territories contained the same text.

In the 2017 budget, the Liberal government proposed providing the Canadian Judicial Council (CJC) with $2.7 million over five years and $500,000 each year after to support programming that included educating and providing ethical training to judges. The budget said the funding would ensure a “greater focus on gender and culturally-sensitive training.”

Former Chief Justice of Nova Scotia Michael MacDonald, the interim executive director of CJC, appeared before Lametti at Tuesday’s justice committee meeting and expressed concern that provincial judges would not be required to receive the same sexual assault law training that would be mandatory for federal appointees if the bill passes.

“Our provincial and territorial judges hear the vast majority of sexual assault cases. In our view, they require access to the same judge-led training opportunities as their federal counterparts,” MacDonald told the committee.

Some provinces have already taken steps to match what the federal government is proposing. Prince Edward Island in 2018 became the first jurisdiction to require incoming judges to receive sexual assault training when it passed the “Mandatory Sexual Assault Training Law Education Act.” Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Justice and Attorney General also announced this past November that it was partnering with Victim Services and the Law Society of Saskatchewan to create a sexual education program for judges and lawyers.

Lametti told the justice committee that he’s asked the federal Justice Department to look into different ways it could make sexual assault law training available for provincially- and territorially-appointed judges.

Lametti was asked by NDP MP Alistair MacGregor, his party’s deputy critic on justice issues, if there would be room to expand the proposed required training to other legal administrative bodies, like the parole board or the immigration and refugee board.

“I think it’s fair to say that is an idea that a government ought to consider and that our government ought to consider. I would say not in this legislation, in part because it’s not within my mandate,” Lametti said.

With files from Victoria Gibson.

*This story was updated after iPolitics received a copy of the letter that Lametti wrote and sent to the provincial justice ministers and attorney generals.